APRIL 27 - MAY 4, 2010
APRIL 27-28Flew out of JFK on Delta #94 at 5:35 pm arriving the next day in Barcelona at 7:55 am. Took the bus to the city and walked a couple of blocks to my hotel on Ronda Universitat.
Hotel Universitat is a small boutique hotel with a nice lobby and rooftop terrace with views of the city. It is in the L'Eixample area half-way between the University of Barcelona and the pedestrian-only street Las Ramblas.
My small but tastefully designed room.LAS RAMBLAS * PORT VELL * BARCELONETA * BARRI GÒTIC * EIXAMPLE
After checking in early at the hotel, I went and explored the city. Headed to the Plaça Catalunya .
I then proceeded to the pedestrain-only Las Ramblas where there were several people dressed up as human statues.
Along the Ramblas was the Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueria.
La Boqueria was an amazing market with colorful fruits, vegetables, spices, candies, and also all kinds of meats, fish, and poultry.
I had a wonderful lunch at a small stall: very fresh, broiled, mixed seafood plate accompanied with a glass of beer on tap.
Next I passed by Barcelona's Opera House, the Gran Teatre del Liceu. Unfortunately, there were no opera performances all week of my stay. Then I went a block off the Rambla to the Plaça Reial in Barri Gòtic with its palm trees, restaurants, bars and clubs and very lively at night.
Back on the Rambla and further down was the statue of Frederic Soler, a Spanish poet and playwright. At the end of Las Ramblas was the statue of Christopher Columbus and the Customs building in Port Vell.
The waterfront with its wooden bridge led to the shopping center Maremagnum.
Crossing back through the bridge I came upon the beautiful Post Office and Telegraph Building and a Roman ruin.
The Church of Sts. Just and Pastor, the Barcelona Cathedral, and a shop with Dali art.
Dinner tonight was just at a neighborhood restaurant called Divinus, to sample regional home cooking. The place was modern and stylish and the dining room had orange leather chairs. I was kind of tired from the trip and the long sightseeing on my first day in Barcelona so I just ordered a glass of rioja (Spanish red wine) and a sandwich with jamón ibérico (Iberico ham) or pata negra, and some Manchego cheese.
APRIL 29
BARCELONA BUS TURISTIC (Blue Route)
Breakfast was great with a lot of different meats (ham, salami, bacon), cheeses, eggs, fruits, vegetables, yogurts, juices, etc.Bought the 2-day ticket on the hop-on-and-hop-off Barcelona Bus Turistic to familiarize myself with the city, then I can go back to the places I would like to see.
Three important buildings on the Passeig de Gràcia and their architects: Casa Lleó Morera (Domènech), Casa Amatller (Puig), and Casa Batlló (Gaudí).
Casa Milà or "La Pedrera" by Antoni Gaudí, Casa de les Punxes by Puig, and Gaudí's Sagrada Familia.
I will be returning to the Casa Batlló, La Pedrera, and Sagrada Familia for more in-depth look in the next day or so. In the meantime, I got off the bus at the wonderful Gaudí-designed Park Güell, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, built from 1900 to 1914.
Colorful mosaic on the ceiling beneath the main terrace and the multicolored dragon fountain.
The building by the entrance with a souvenir shop, the staircase to the park leading to the hypostyle hall with the doric columns and the mosaic discs on its ceiling.
Three gorgeous mosaic fountains along the steps.
The two fairy tale-like buildings at the entrance viewed from the beautiful mosaic-tiled serpentine seating in the main terrace.
Gaudí's house, a colonnaded footpath under the roadway viaduct, and the large cross on top of a hill.
Hopped back on the bus and hopped off at La Rotonda which was built as a hotel but is now a hospital and quite rundown. Church and school near the Mercat de Sarrià area.
Saw the dragon gate designed by Gaudí in the Pavellons de la Finca Güell; got off at the Palau Reial, built in 1924 as the residence of King Alfonso XIII and was the setting for the royal wedding of King Juan Carlos' daughter Infanta Cristina in 1997, to walk in the park-like grounds.
Took the bus back to Plaça Catalunya and went back to La Boqueria and had some chipirones (grilled baby squid) and a small bottle of rioja for lunch. Saw the Joan Miró mosaic on the pavement in La Rambla.
Once again I passed by the ubiquitous "human statues" of Las Ramblas.
Walked on Passeig de Gràcia to get a closer look at Casa Batlló and La Pedrera then boarded the tour bus again. Next stop was at the Monestir de Pedralbes, a 14th century nun's convent now a museum, then back to the center of town and to my hotel room.
Bought a bottle of rioja and a sandwich from Bracafé, a restaurant that sells Brazilian coffee, and brought them back to my room and watched TV before I went out again to sample the nightlife in Barcelona.
APRIL 30
BARCELONA BUS TURISTIC (Red, Green, & Blue Routes) * SAGRADA FAMILIA * DIVINUS
The Red Route ran from Plaça Catalunya to Park Olimpic. Saw the Joan Miró Park with his statue "Dona i Ocell." Got off at the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC). Passed Montjuic, the Olympic Stadium, Joan Miró Museum, Teleferic de Montjuic, Columbus statue, and Roy Lichtenstein's "Barcelona Head."
Barcelona viewed from Montjuic; got off at Port Olimpic and checked out Frank Gehry's Peix d'Or statue; went to the casino and later walked on Barceloneta beach.
Got on the Green Route to the Forum and back to the Red Route to the Santa Maria del Mar church.
After lunch at a tapas bar near the church, I went back to Plaça Catalunya and took the Blue Route bus to Sagrada Familia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This church, Barcelona's most famous landmark, was Gaudí's life work. He started in 1883 until his death in 1926 and it is scheduled to be finished in 2026.
Stopped at the Lidl supermercado and bought some rioja, manchego and some Iberico ham then walked back to the hotel.Dinner was at Divinus again. I started with a glass of Cava (Spanish sparkling wine) and terrine of mushrooms with truffle and pine kernels. My main course was veal entrecote with black peppercorns paired with an excellent glass of rioja. Skipped dessert but had a second glass of rioja. It was about 1 am so I decided to just call it a day.
MAY 1
BARCELONA CATHEDRAL * PALAU DE LA MUSICA CATALANA * CENTFOCS
Barcelona Cathedral is officially known as the Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia. She was a martyr and her body is entombed in the cathedral's crypt. During my visit there was a renovation being done to the 13th century building.
Some of the icons in the cathedral were the black Our Lady of Montserrat, St George and the Dragon, a Madonna and Child, and Our Lady of Immaculate Conception.
Next this morning was the Palau de la Musica Catalana, a modernista-style concert hall and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was designed by architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner and built between 1905 and 1908 for the Orfeó Català, a choral group.
The concert hall has a pipe organ and the ceiling is dominated by an enormous skylight of stained glass designed by Antoni Rigalt.
Dinner tonight was at the Catalan restaurant Centfocs in Eixample. I had calamars a la romana (fried squid rings) for starters with a glass of cava. Then I had a delicious crep de marisc (seafood crepe). My main course was butifara esparracada (Catalan pork sausage sautéed with mushrooms and white beans) with a bottle of Raimat Chardonnay.Headed to a couple of bars near the University before I turned in for the night.
MAY 2
CASA BATLLÓ * LA PEDRERA * ELS QUATRE GATS
Today is an all-Gaudí day. First it's Casa Batlló, another UNESCO World Heritage Site, which was remodelled in 1904-06 by Gaudí, by adding a fifth floor and also a new façade, for the textile industrialist Josep Batlló i Casanovas.Different views of the façade of Casa Batlló.
Windows of Casa Batlló
Details of Casa Batlló
The roof and chimneys of Casa Batlló
Casa Milà or La Pedrera, another UNESCO World Heritage Site, was designed by Gaudí and built from 1905-10 for the wealthy couple Rosario Segimon and Pere Milà.
The roof and chimneys of La Pedrera
With my Italian friend Max who lives in Barcelona now.
A typical apartment at La Pedrera.
After an enjoyable but exhausting visit to the two beautiful houses, I was ready to go back to my hotel room and relax with a glass of rioja and some manchego cheese and watch tv before getting ready to dinner.
The Els Quatre Gats restaurant is located in the Barri Gòtic area and famous for being the place where artists like Picasso and Utrillo, composer Albeniz hung out. It opened on 12 June 1897 on the ground floor of Casa Marti which was designed by Puig.
I met two Japanese girls while waiting for my table and I invited them to join me at my table. We shared mussels marinara, meat croquettes and a variety of olives, as our appetizers. Also ordered a bottle of rioja.
For my main course I ordered duck confit with apple compote and walnut liquer . Asami had seafood ravioli and Noriko had roast chicken Catalan-style with prunes and pine kernels. Excellent meal!
It was raining really hard and I had a long walk so they insisted on giving me one of their umbrellas. Soaking wet I arrived at my hotel room and had a large glass of rioja and fell deeply asleep as it poured outside.
MAY 3
MONTSERRAT * CASA CALVET
Cold and misty outside, I went out after breakfast for my day trip to the Benedictine Abbey, Santa Maria de Montserrat, in a mountain in Catalonia about an hour away from Barcelona.
The Basilica is home to the La Moreneta or the Black Virgin which was found in a cave (Santa Cova).
I would like to come back here someday and visit the Escalonia and attend the Boy's Choir concert, the Santa Cova where they found the Black Virgin's statue and the abbey's museum full of religious art and artifacts. Also, would like to include a vist to the most famous Benedictine abbey in Monte Cassino in Italy. Not surprising to have these desires because I went to a Benedictine high school in Manila.
For a virtual visit of the Montserrat Abbey, click here.
Dinner tonight was at the Gaudí-designed building Casa Calvet. I started with a glass of Kir Royale then ordered Ou de Calaf (Calaf egg, slowly simmered, on a bed of Lyonnaise potatoes with summer truffle sauce). Never thought an egg could taste like this! My main course was Llom de lluç amb navalles (grilled lamb chops with tomato garlic mayonnaise, carrots and onion tempura) paired with a very nice Gran Reserva rioja wine. For dessert, I had Mango ravioli with yogurt and basil ice cream followed by a generous serving of Delamain cognac. What a nice farewell dinner in beautiful Barcelona!
MAY 4
BARCELONA * NEW YORK
Flew out of Barcelona on Delta #95 at 11:20 am arriving at 2:20 pm at JFK. Thoroughly enjoyed this vacation!
To view my main website, click here.
